Iron Man

Robert Downey Jr.
Running Time: 126 minutes
MPAA rating: PG-13
Wow.

Just ... wow.

Who'da thunk that a movie based on a second-tier comic-book hero would be the first super-hit of the year?

I was looking forward to seeing "Iron Man," but I didn't expect to be as blown away by the movie as I -- and the rest of America -- was.

"Iron Man" is the best film of the year, and credit is due to three major factors:

1. Robert Downey Jr. He was born to play the jaded, booze-swilling, philandering Tony Stark. Downey's performance carries the film -- especially during those long stretches where there isn't any action.

2. Jon Favreau. Sure, he's the guy who directed "Elf," and most fanboys had serious misgivings about Favreau being onboard as director, but he did everything right. He consulted fans online during the production process, the same way Peter Jackson made Tolkien fans an integral part of the preproduction of "Lord of the Rings." By consulting with the fans, Favreau made certain he pleased not only non-comics fans, but the core audience of fanboys who will be watching the film several times at the theater and buying the majority of the merchandise.

3. Marvel Comics. "Iron Man" is the first Marvel property to be produced by the comicbook publisher's film-production company. It's about time comic-book publishers took control of their work instead of trusting Hollywood to treat their characters with respect.

The plot of the film is pretty straightforward. Super-wealthy arms manufacturer Tony Stark (Downey) is captured by terrorists. He creates a suit of iron to escape.

He discovers that his weapons have been sold to terrorists for years behind his back. So, he creates an even more powerful suit -- becoming Iron Man -- in order to combat terrorism and make penance for being a man who has made billions from suffering and destruction.

Stark also has to solve the mystery of who in his company has been selling the weapons to the terrorists -- not only because of the moral implications, but also because the traitor is trying to kill Stark.

"Iron Man" is well worth seeing -- more than once. It's a rollercoaster ride of great action, fun performances and perhaps the best comic-book movie yet made.

(c) 2007 King Features Synd., Inc.